FläktGroup appoints new CEO & closes a successful 2023
Financial Results 2023 and Executive Leadership Team Announcements. FläktGroup is closing a highly successful 2023 and is appointing Trevor Young as Chief Executive Officer and Dave Dorney as Chief Sales Officer
FläktGroup, a leader in sustainable air technology solutions, is pleased to announce key highlights of the year 2023:
- +41.2% growth in normalized EBITDA vs last year
- 82% Cash Conversion* and a significant reduction of net leverage down to 3 times*
- Critical Applications business making further progress with 136% order intake vs last year and stabilizing demand shifts in commercial business, collectively resulting in a strong orderbook that provides a head start into 2024.
*defined as Free Cash Flow/nEBITDA; net leverage defined as net debt/ nEBITDA
Founded in October 2016, FläktGroup is the result of the merger of two renowned companies, both with centuries of history: DencoHappel and Fläkt Woods, owned by European mid-market sector-specialist investor Triton.
“We are extremely pleased with FläktGroup’s performance last year. The results speak for themselves and are a clear testimony that our transformation program is progressing well”, comments Michael Gahleitner, Co-Head of the Industrial Tech sector at Triton. He continues: “We also want to thank Hubertus Mühlhäuser for stepping in mid last year as the interim Executive Chairman and for his effective leadership in 2023 as well the entire FläktGroup’s Leadership Team for driving positive change and achieving these outstanding results”.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Trevor Young to lead FläktGroup
Following an intensive search process for a new CEO that is capable to provide the continued leadership for the transformation of FläktGroup and on the back of the strong 2023 results, we have identified Trevor Young to take over as Chief Executive Officer of FläktGroup as of March 1, 2024, at which point Hubertus Mühlhäuser will resume his original, non-executive role as Chairman of the Shareholder Committee.
Trevor has been with FläktGroup for 12 years in various roles, lately as Chief Sales Officer and Chief Officer for the Americas including SEMCO & Woods US, FläktGroup’s branch in the US. Trevor has a profound knowledge of the company, the products, and markets, and he has been showing continued successes over many years. He is a great leader living up to our core values and very well accepted by all stakeholders. “After the strong performance of the last quarters, that were achieved also thanks to Trevor’s strong contributions as Chief Sales Officer, we are excited that Trevor has accepted our offer to step up and to take this role to run the company together with the Executive Team. I am looking forward to continuing our fruitful collaboration, and we all wish Trevor success and luck in his new role,” comments Hubertus Mühlhäuser.
“I am humbled and honoured to have the opportunity to lead FläktGroup and work alongside its talented team. FläktGroup has a strong foundation, and I look forward to driving further profitable growth and building our joint future,” comments Trevor Young.
Chief Sales Officer David (Dave) Dorney to strengthen the Executive Team
With Trevor’s appointment as the CEO, we are also delighted to appoint Dave Dorney as FläktGroup’s new Chief Sales Officer (CSO). Dave joined FläktGroup on February 1, 2024 and will take over fully by March 1, 2024 after a handover period with Trevor.
Dave joins FläktGroup from Johnson Controls where he started in October 2000 and held various positions, including Vice President and General Manager of the EMEA Heating and Cooling division. In his most recent role, Dave was responsible for leading the field business of more than 1,500 employees across 14 countries driving growth in the key vertical markets of Life Science, Food & Beverage, Manufacturing & Industrial together with having responsibility for developing the region’s sustainability division.
Dave’s profile is an excellent match to the search criteria that emphasized deep industry experience and relationships in the HVAC industry, proven track record of working in various international environments, understanding of key account management, and recognizing the importance of strong entrepreneurial market leaders.
“I am delighted to welcome Dave to join our team as the new Chief Sales Officer and as my direct successor in the role. We are all looking forward to benefiting from his profound sales background and know-how of the industry”, comments Trevor Young.
Outlook for the year 2024
FläktGroup’s leadership has a positive outlook to the year 2024. We expect a continued improvement in financial performance, following the execution of our transformation program. We expect the uncertainty in some end customer markets, affected by high interest rates to be counterbalanced by strong demand in Data Centres and other critical application areas, demonstrated by a very strong orderbook, and continued growth in Services.
For more information contact:
Tobias Ketterle
Chief Financial Officer
Phone: +49 2323 6236-144
tobias.ketterle@flaktgroup.com
or
Yvonne Comolli
Chief Human Resources Officer
Phone: +49 2323 6236-103
About FläktGroup
FläktGroup, a Triton portfolio company and a leader in air technology, delivers best in class, innovative and energy-efficient solutions to ensure comfort, safety, and performance, whilst reducing customer’s carbon footprint. FläktGroup’s premier brands, have been setting technological standards for more than 100 years and can fulfil the most demanding customer requirements.
Headquartered in Germany, FläktGroup operates with more than 4,000 employees all over the world with production sites across Europe, Asia, and the USA.